“I am very pleased to announce today that at long last, the city and Canadian Pacific, CP, have reached a fair agreement that will secure the Arbutus greenway for public use going forward, for the generations to come,” Robertson said. “It is now public land. And that means that after a lot of patience, a lot of commitment on both sides of the table, we can proudly say that we have an agreement that will benefit all residents into the future.”

He added that CP Rail will begin removing the railroad tracks, with that work expected to be completed within two years.

In most places, the strip of land in question is about 20 metres across.

Robertson repeatedly said that exactly how the space will be redeveloped remains to be determined via a public-consultation process. But he also emphasized the idea is to use it as a transportation corridor.

“At this point, what is envisioned is passenger rail side by side with a greenway for walk, run, and bike,” Robertson said.

He estimated the land’s redevelopment will cost the city between $25 million and $30 million on top of the $55-million purchase price.

In envisioning a transportation greenway for the Arbutus corridor, the City of Vancouver looked to similar instances around the world where a transportation line was reclaimed for public space.City of Vancouver

In the meantime, the mayor asked that people not plant community gardens on the land in locations where they had been before CP Rail removed them through 2015.

“What we are asking people to do is to not encroach while the public-planning process happens,” Robertson said. “There are about 350 garden plots that are legitimate, that are approved by the city over many decades. Those, obviously, remain. It is up to the community engagement to decide whether some more gardening space could be allocated somewhere along the corridor.

“Obviously, it needs to work with the transportation and the walking and biking path. So most of the space will be taken up by transportation, we expect,” he continued. “We’re asking everyone to hold the line for now, and we’ll make the improvements and have the community process to decide the future.”

Canadian Pacific Police Service officers at the Maple Community Garden in March 2015.Stephen Hui

A dispute over the 17 hectares of land had grown grew increasingly bitter in recent years. Talks broke down in September 2014.

“Very, very disappointed to see CP being absolutely inflexible and refusing to make a fair deal on this important corridor for Vancouver,” Robertson said at the time. "We will not be bullied into overpaying for the Arbutus corridor. This is an important piece of land for the city, but at the same time, I will be fighting to protect Vancouver's and our taxpayers' interests here in ensuring that we don't overpay for the Arbutus corridor and ensure that there is an appropriate negotiation.”

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